The Last Sunrise
by Spirit of the Twilight
Summary: Faced with dwindling numbers and a crippled military, Bowser learns of a strategy that could win him the Mushroom Kingdom and surrounding lands all without lifting a claw. Alternate Universe. Dark Themes & Character Death.


**Author's Note:** As stated in the summary, this story takes place in an alternate universe. That means the characters and elements are not based off of any game, comic, cartoon, or movie in particular. Instead, it's going to be a mix of existing characters and elements from the entire Mario universe and new ones. Also as noted, this story will contain dark themes. The "M" rating is for intense violence and character death in the later chapters. I do not recommend this story for Yoshi fans, so if you really like the character, you might want to stop reading now. This story is, after all, intended to be a tragedy. Finally, constructive criticism is always welcome.

_Disclaimer:_ Nintendo owns the characters, places, objects, concepts, and overall universe found in this story. No money is being made as a result of publishing this story.

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**Chapter One**

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Warm waves of sparkling ocean water mingled with the golden grains of beach sand while bearing witness to a joyous island festival. The sounds of celebration were almost as common place as the sound of the ocean on the medium-sized island. Aside from a few shells of various shapes and colors scattered here and there on the beautiful beach, the only other thing that could be found was a slightly leaning wooden sign. Written in uneven and sometimes backwards letters, in all the different colors of the rainbow, and decorated with various drawings of fruit, enthusiastically read: Welcome to Yoshi Island!

"Mighty mostaccioli!" Luigi exuberantly exclaimed upon swallowing a humongous mouthful of refreshing watermelon. "I can hardly stand the flavor!"

"Seems to me you're standing it just fine," Toad chimed in with narrow eyes as he watched slice after slice vanish before his very eyes. "Keep it up Luigi and you'll no longer be the tall and _thin_ Mario Brother." Luigi did not at all appear worried, so Toad simply shrugged and turned his attention away from the one man eating contest and to the one woman that seemed as if she was carrying the weight of all the land on her shoulders alone. "Is anything wrong, Princess?"

Princess Peach Toadstool, who had said so little and appeared so distant for much of the afternoon, blinked a few times and briefly turned to Toad. She seemed both content and sad.

"This is such a peaceful place to visit, isn't it? If only my people could live as the Yoshis do, never having to fear an attack," Princess Peach wished out loud as she once more took in the pleasant sight of Yoshis of all color merrily playing and cheerfully singing, blissfully chasing their tails, happily racing while balancing pieces of fruit on their noses, serenely sleeping out in the open and under the soothing sun, and, of course, gobbling delicious fruit. They were all positively carefree and in a state of perpetual joy granted to them by the mystical, yet in many ways mysterious, Super Happy Tree.

"Do not lose all hope, princess," Toadsworth began with optimism as he stood up from the peach-colored blanket they were all relaxing on, "because if you do, then those dreadful downmarket hoodlums of Dark Land will only seek a longer and bloodier battle for conquest of the land. We have the forces of evil on the back foot, and as long as we don't lose our bottles, someday, the kingdom will enjoy the same peace as this quaint island. I am most certain of that."

A rather loud snore nearly stepped on Toadsworth's final words, causing the group to turn their attention to a certain plump plumber, who clearly had found his own peace after many pieces of scrumptious fruit.

"Well, at least when Mario's not taking a nap," Toad added with a shake of his head.

"Yoshi bring more yummy food for friends!" Yoshi excitedly announced as he trotted up to the picnicking visitors. Everyone, with the exception of Mario who remained adrift on some cozy cloud floating over the land of slumber, turned to see Yoshi speeding towards them – with what appeared to be empty wicker baskets.

"I say, are my eyes deceiving me or have things gone pear-shaped?" Toadsworth curiously inquired as he took off his spectacles for a good cleaning.

"Uh, Yoshi?" Luigi hesitantly began as Yoshi reached the group and began wagging his short tail, "did you eat all the fruit again?" Luigi already knew the answer to his question, but he would always give a terrific pal like Yoshi the benefit of the doubt, no matter what.

"What Luigi mean?" Yoshi asked in an uncertain voice as he tilted his head in curiosity. "Yoshi have tasty…" his voice went from soft to softer to silent as he raised the baskets he was holding. "Ooooh… oopsie… Yoshi sorry… Me didn't mean to eat it all…" Yoshi apologized with a heavy frown. His wide eyes began to tear up and his lower lip began to quiver.

"Do not fret my good egg. You gave it some stick, and that is what is most important," Toadsworth promptly assured him with a smile.

"Toadsworth's right, Yoshi! There's no reason to be sad," Peach agreed before pausing briefly, "I think I know what'll make you feel a whole lot better," she concluded as she motioned with her gloved finger for Yoshi to come over to her.

Yoshi quickly perked up and briskly appeared at the princess' side.

"You're getting quicker by the day, it seems!" Peach complimented Yoshi as he plopped down on his back on the soft, verdant grass next to her. The princess then proceeded to rub his belly and even toss in a few tickles here and there.

Yoshi unleashed a barrage of squeals and laughter as his sensitive stomach area was treated to the princess' gentle and diligent touch. Other yoshis in the waving field took notice of the laughter, and they too decided to treat one another to a belly rub.

"That's better," Peach said with a smile and nod as a few new tears, this time of happiness, escaped Yoshi's closed eyes as she continued to administer pleasure, "if just one yoshi frowns, then everyone frowns."

Simply being around a yoshi seemed to warm the heart and lift the spirit. There just was something about their cheerful and kind nature that easily appealed to every person that had a heart. The way each yoshi unconditionally cared for the other and the way they lived together without a glimmer of hostility or conflict was an inspiration and something that others repeatedly strived to emulate.

The group would have been perfectly content just watching Yoshi and the other yoshis laugh and have a joyous time for the rest of the afternoon, but the anxious shouting of a rapidly approaching mushroom retainer brought everything to an abrupt halt.

"Princess, princess!" called the toad with brown spots and blue shirt. His arms were waving furiously in the air and distress was etched across his face.

Mario sprung up and his eyes shot open, the loud shouting bursting his dream bubble in a very painful way.

"Wh..what's going on?" Mario asked with a bit of a stutter as he rubbed his eyes.

"Something's definitely wrong," Peach said in a soft, worried tone.

The distressed toad arrived at the princess' side, although the message would have to wait a bit. The mushroom retainer was out of breath and trembling.

"It's… it's the capital!" he struggled to begin as he gasped for air. "Un…der… attack!"

"Bowser!" Mario jumped in as he gritted his teeth. The toad didn't have to reveal the identity of the attacker – only one creature could instill the deep fear found in the eyes of the mushroom retainer.

"Holy ravioli…h-how… how m-many tr-troops?" Luigi stuttered in a quaking voice. Unlike his brave brother, times like these made him yearn for the days of being a simple plumber in Brooklyn. If he was the type of guy that relished in adventure and fighting, he wouldn't have picked a career that involved pipes and plungers!

"Luigi not worry! Me help!" Yoshi eagerly announced as he hopped up, "Yoshi's friends help too!" and with that, Yoshi scurried off to spread the call for help.

"We're going to need all the help we can get!" the toad retainer told the group as he tried to calm himself down. "Air and land, the capital's crawling with creepy and callous troops from Dark Land. Our own troops are holding them off… for now…"

The uncertainty and the panicked tone of the toad led everyone to believe that the coming battle was not going to be one of the easier ones.

"Princess, stay here on Yoshi Island. You'll be safe here," Mario said to her as he stood up. "When Yoshi returns, tell him that we already went back and that he should come as soon as he can. Let's go, Luigi."

"No Mario, I'm coming with you," Peach firmly objected as Luigi joined his brother. "It's my kingdom. My people are in real danger and I can't just sit here and enjoy the sun and the fruit while they are suffering."

"Master Mario does have a sharp point, princess. Upon setting eyes on you, King Bowser goes positively barmy, and that could result in over-egging the pudding," Toadsworth pointed out in concern.

"I can take care of myself," Peach stated, directing her unwavering words at everyone. "I'm going."

"Oh boy. This probably isn't going to end well…" Toad commented with a sigh and a shake of his head.

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Near the center of the tropical island, Yoshi and thirty of his friends had gathered around the legendary Super Happy Tree. Although it was called a tree by the island's inhabitants as well as others from the other lands, it actually looked more like a massive and magnificent vine that sprouted numerous smaller vines here and there. A few sparkling rainbow leaves could be found along with various fruit, and finally, a large, pinkish-red heart rested near the top end with black eyes and an ever-present smile.

Without any sound or a cue, the yoshis began to sing to the tree. They all seemed to start at once and their voices began and remained in perfect sync.

"_**Eeeaaeaaallll**__… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll…__** eeeaaeaaallll**__… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll…_… … … …yoshi! _**Weeeaaeaaallll**__… weeeaaeaaallll… weeeaaeaaallll… weeeaaeaaallll… __**weeeaaeaaallll**__… weeeaaeaaallll…_ _weeeaaeaaallll…_ _weeeaaeaaallll…_ … … … …yoshi! … … … … _**Eeeaaeaaallll**__… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll… __**eeeaaeaaallll**__… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll… eeeaaeaaallll…_… … … …yoshi! … … … … _**Weeeaaeaaallll**__… weeeaaeaaallll… weeeaaeaaallll… weeeaaeaaallll… __**weeeaaeaaallll**__… weeeaaeaaallll…_ _weeeaaeaaallll…_ _weeeaaeaaallll…_ … … … …yoshi!"

As suddenly as the singing started, it ended. The yoshis' wide-eyes remained entirely fixated on the tree, and after a few moments, the heart began to emit a pink glow and sway to the left and the right. Yoshi then took a few steps toward the tree and began making his plea.

"Yoshi need help! Me want to help friends!"

After another couple of moments, the pink glow began to spread down the thick vine and across the small ones as well.

"Woooow!" the high-pitched yoshis all exclaimed together, completely mesmerized by the brilliant shine that had soaked the Super Happy Tree.

Special melons began rapidly growing along the towering vine. The yoshis began licking their lips with their long tongues and hopping up and down in uncontrollable anticipation of the soon to be devoured fruit. When the melons had fully grown, they fell to the ground. For a brief period, it was raining melons all around the sparkling Super Happy Tree.

"Yoshi want!" a light blue yoshi cried out excitedly as he swallowed one of the melons.

"Yoshi like!" declared a purple yoshi, clearly delighted by the taste of the melon.

"Yummy yummy!" squealed a yellow yoshi that was savoring the sweetness.

The thirty-one yoshis briskly devoured a melon a piece, and soon, they too began to glow, this time in rainbow colors.

"Yoshiiiii!" numerous yoshi calls began to flood the area as the vibrant rainbow glow around each yoshi began to expand, engulfing the immediate area. When the shine began to recede, every yoshi now sported a magnificent pair of sparkling white wings. Gusts of wind took the area by storm as the yoshis eagerly began flapping their newfound wings.

"Go go!" the green Yoshi shouted as he began flying off back in the direction of his friends.

'Yaaaay!" cried the various yoshis as they speedily followed their friend and leader, forming a moving rainbow across the tropical sky.

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"Toad, you wait here for Yoshi. We're going to return to the kingdom and start knocking Bowser and his band of bullies back to Dark Land," Mario told Toad as he punched his clenched fist against his open palm. The group had just about arrived at the green warp pipe that would transport them back to the mainland.

"Works for me!" Toad acknowledged, happy to keep his head out of the fire for as long as possible.

As the returning group continued towards the warp pipe, a familiar laughter began to pop out of the pipe.

"Mweh heh heh heh! Stand back and get ready to applaud, for the most beautiful Koopa of them all – heck, the envy of every so called female, the amazingly glamorous Kammy Koopa is about to dazzle you with her radiant presence!"

Following those words emerged the form. Kammy Koopa, the high-ranking magikoopa in purple and lavender, shot out of the warp pipe like a rocket and immediately began circling above on her customized white and pink Kammy broom.

"Well, well… where's my endless heartfelt applause? Where's my darling bouquet of beautiful red roses? Where's the bloodthirsty fight over who will have the distinct honor of complementing me first? Well well well? Do you all have sand in your eyes and have your tongues been sunburned?" Kammy irritably interrogated the thunderstruck group as she started hovering up and down in noticeable anger. She then suddenly calmed down, fixed her undeniably sporty Kammy specs, and took a good look around. "Say hey! This _is_ a gorgeous chunk of nowhere. Not _as_ gorgeous as its latest and certainly final visitor, but gorgeous none the less! You all should stick around for a while and maybe some of the island's quaint glamour will rub off on you poor pitifully plain people. Actually, it'll probably take more than a while, so you walking eyesores and pains in the neck won't be needing this!" she exclaimed with a riotous cackle as she directed her magic wand at the warp pipe. "Get in shape you flippant, flabby fools! Run in endless circles, jump till your legs are ready to fall off! It's time to take to the dance floor and tango with this rockin', boppin' and bunny hoppin' pipe!"

The warp pipe briefly flashed blue, red, and orange as an orange circle, red triangle, and blue square spun around it at mind numbing speeds before merging with the pipe. There was a dazzling flash of colored light, and shortly after it returned to its normal color, the pipe began bouncing up in the air and all around.

"Blimey! We're in a sticky wicket now!" Toadsworth panicked as the warp pipe jumped over his head and toward the beach.

"Leaping linguini, what a fast pipe!" Luigi yelled as hurriedly pulled down on his cap and crouched as the pipe sprung past him as well.

"Lord Bowser is quite busy adding another kingdom to his fine collection. He doesn't need the likes of you …_people_… getting in his evil way! So stay put here… like… forever!" Kammy shouted with all her might as she nearly fell off her broom. After recovering not so gracefully, she sped off toward the ocean.

"Mario! What are we going to do now?" Luigi asked as his big brother glared at the escaping Kammy.

"Simple. We hop to it and catch that pipe!" Mario answered without hesitation, turning his attention to the direction the warp pipe was heading.

"Are you nuts? Look how high that pipe is bouncing! That pipe might bounce well when it hits the ground, but I certainly won't!" Toad stated as his eyes went wide with fear.

"We don't have a choice. That pipe is the only quick way off the island. We'd never get back in time to save the kingdom from attack by going the way of ocean."

"Mario's right. All we need to do is grab hold of the pipe as it lands, hold on tight, climb up and in when the time is right," Peach explained with steadfast determination, much to the dreadful alarm of everyone – especially Mario and Toadsworth. "Yes. I'm still going back."

"Very well princess, but I insist on being at your side," Toadsworth said, although he appeared a tad wobbly, probably from the idea of hanging on for dear life on the warp pipe. "If I could survive that daft roller coaster at Pinna Park on our last vacation, I can certainly hold on to that bloody pipe, so let's have at it!"

"Oh boy. This probably isn't going to end well…" Toad repeated with a sigh.

"Things might not end well for the kingdom if we don't make our way back. We have to at least try, so let's go!" Mario told the group as he ran off after the warp pipe.

The magic spell that had been cast by Kammy propelled the warp pipe in a multitude of directions and heights that couldn't be predicted. Mario and the others watched with frustration as they gave chase to a pipe that sometimes shot upwards several yards while other times barely managing to get off the ground. They sometimes tailed it to the left, other times, they were kicking up sand to the right. There were moments that it seemed like they would never catch the pipe on foot, and on the other hand, it occasionally seemed within reach.

"Gotch…ah!" Mario yelled in surprise as the pipe jerked to the right and his grip gave away. After falling a couple of feet, he landed face down on the warm sand, and even got a bit of a taste of it, too.

Luigi ran over to his brother to help him up, only to discover the warp pipe doing the same – although its intentions likely weren't in the interest of aid!

"Terrible tortellini!" Luigi panicked as he ducked once again.

"Lui-gi!" Mario called out as he coughed a bit. "You're supposed to go after the pipe, not hide from it!"

"How can I go after the pipe when it's coming after _me_?" Luigi asked as he nervously looked around. He found Toad and Toadsworth in close pursuit.

"I just know I'm going to end up regretting this… just watch…" Toad complained before making a jump of mushroom proportions.

"Good show!" Toadsworth complimented Toad from below as Toad grabbed a firm hold of the top of the warp pipe. "Capital!" he cheered with a wave of his cane.

'If you… say soooooh!" Toad shouted with clenched eyes as he felt the wind force from the acceleration of the warp pipe pull on his small body.

"Hang on, Toad!" Peach yelled with considerable concern as the others joined her and followed the flying pipe and mushroom.

"Gee… and here I thought I was supposed to let _go_…" Toad thought to himself as his grip grew ever more painful. "Uh… nice warp pipe… be a good warp pipe!" he pleaded with the rambunctious pipe as he felt his stomach being put through a spin cycle.

"It's on its way down! When it lands, you should have a couple of seconds to pull yourself up and hop in!" Mario shouted with his hands on the sides of his mouth as the pipe plunged downwards.

The force of the landing proved too rattling for Toad to take though, and upon hitting the beach, Toad once again hit the air – this time without his tireless dance partner.

"Yowza!" Toad screamed as he careened in the direction of the sandy beach.

"Hang on paisano!" Mario yelled, forcing himself to catch his second, third, or whatever wind he was on to catch his friend.

Both Mario and Luigi attempted to get under the shooting mushroom, but their attempt fell short. Fortunately for Toad, his fall also happened to be a short one, otherwise when the mushroom landed head first in the sand, a headache would have been the least of his worries.

"Ni…ce cat…ch" Toad sarcastically complimented them as he pulled his head out of the sand and then promptly fell over.

"Toad!" Peach cried out with worry washing over her face. She ran over to him to check for injuries.

"Oh my! The poor bloke!" Toadsworth exclaimed as he joined Peach at Toad's side.

"From now on, I'm going to leave the jumping to Mario, Luigi and frogs!" Toad declared as he was helped to sit up by Peach and Toadsworth. "This toad is done with it!"

"Jumping doesn't seem to be getting us an inch off the ground. Maybe we should try and think of something else, Mario," Luigi suggested as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. "Mario?" he repeated his brother's name and looked to his side to see why he hadn't gotten an answer. "Mario! Where'd you go to now?"

Mario was already rushing off into the distance in hot pursuit of the warp pipe. He needed to catch it, and he needed to catch it soon! After beating back Bowser's army of minions year after year, he wasn't about to let it all go down the drain because of one hopping warp pipe!

"What you doing?"

Yoshi's curious and unexpected voice made Mario's heart jump even more than it already was. Yoshi was flying at what appeared to be a comfortable speed on the side of Mario, who clearly was getting tired, both physically and mentally, of chasing the pipe.

"Kammy Koopa… she put a mag…ic spell on the… warp pi…pe… need to catch… it," Mario managed to utter to Yoshi as sweat started to burn his eyes.

"That easy. Yoshi catch!" Yoshi announced excitedly as he flew up in the air and rejoined his flying friends. "Yoshi catch!" he repeated to the other Yoshis as he pointed to the bouncing pipe.

"Ya he ya hooo!" the yoshis exclaimed jubilantly, perceiving this, as with nearly everything in life, as a fun game to be played.

The yoshis darted off after the pipe, easily leaving Mario and the others behind. As they speedily approached the pipe, they began spitting their long, adhesive pink tongues at it. Most of the tongues missed their mark at first, but a few managed to make contact and, utilizing the remarkable muscle control they were famous for, the yoshis wrapped their tongues around the pipe. The pipe began yanking and jerking them as the yoshis tried to bring the pipe to a halt.

"Wah!" cried one yellow yoshi as he was forcefully tugged along.

"Owie!" screamed a purple yoshi as he felt his tongue being stretched beyond its normal reach.

More and more yoshis began to loop their tongues around the pipe, which now appeared more pinkish-red than green from all the tongues. The magic spell coating the pipe remained unyielding, and the pipe continued its erratic pattern. Some of the yoshis slammed into the sandy beach, unable to cope with the pipe's sudden and violent descents. A few ended up making big splashes in the ocean. Other yoshis were involved in painful midair collisions as the pine spun in the air, causing a loosely-formed rainbow twister. Panicked squeals and painful shrieks were in abundance as several yoshis lost their grips and were flung in various directions. Luckily, the special fruit the Super Happy Tree had produced for the yoshis gifted them with added strength among several other powers, so although the pain was very real, it was certainly bearable.

"The yoshis should be able to hold the warp pipe steady long enough for us to safely jump in," Mario said as he and the others watched with trepidation as the yoshis attempted to bring the pipe to a near halt with their strong tongues. They seemed to be making progress as additional tongues were thrown into the mix.

"I guess a wet, slimy pipe is a lot better than a high-flying one," Toad commented as he made a face.

Once the thirty one yoshis had successfully wrapped their tongues around the pipe, many of which had now overlapped to create layers, Mario and the others rushed forward. The struggling warp pipe was floating three or so feet off the ground and the group had to navigate around tongues, yoshis, tongues, yoshis, and more tongues to reach the pipe. Upon offering their many thanks and praises, Mario helped the princess and Luigi helped Toadsworth reach the warp pipe, and they, along with Toad and the other mushroom retainer, took the warp one by one. In an instant, each one then emerged just outside the capital of the kingdom, where they were greeted by menacing flames and scattered explosions in the distance.

_To be continued…_

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**Endnote:** After an intense search on the Internet, I could not find any lyrics to the song that was sung by the yoshis in "Yoshi's Story". So, I turned to my copy of Super Smash Bros. Brawl and then I turned to my ear to try and make out the "words" the yoshis were singing. They don't sound like words to me, although they could be saying "we ate it all" or "the apple" over and over again. Sorry if what I came up with didn't accurately capture the song lyrics, but it's the best I could come up with based on what I heard. If anyone has the lyrics or knows of where they can be found, please let me know and I'll edit this chapter and give credit here.


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